In 1933 Cornelia de Lange described two unrelated children with a distinctive disease picture which now carries her name. For 30 years only 27 cases were recorded in the medical literature but in the years 1963-1968 there were 209 additional reports on patients with the syndrome. The student of medical communication could use the curve of publications for analysis of the penetration of medical knowledge; compare the acceptance of de Lange syndrome with that of Down's syndrome, Rubinstein-Taybi syndrome, and other disease pictures whose etiology was unknown at the time of their clinical description; and for assessment of the value of such publications. Patients with de Lange syndrome probably have been with us all these years and it is doubtful that the increased number of publications has anything to do with incidence and prevalence of the disorder. Although there are now over 250 cases on record and many more diagnosed